Volume 1 , Issue 5

September 2019 COLLIER CLERK NEWSLETTER

May 2020

Walk-in customer services are once again

available to the public at the courthouse and all satellite locations.

The well-being of our customers and

employees is our highest priority.

Actions are being taken across our opera-tions to help safeguard our customers and employees. These actions include face shields for staff, establishing social distanc-ing parameters and frequently sanitizing high-traffic areas, including customer ser-vice counters and high-touch areas.

Main Office

Gov. Center/Courthouse 3315 Tamiami Trail E.

Naples, FL 34112

Satellite Offices

Golden Gate Gov. Center 4715 Golden Gate Parkway

Naples, FL 34116

Immokalee 106 South First Street Immokalee, FL 34142

North Collier Government Ctr.

2335 Orange Blossom Drive Naples, FL 34109

Everglades City Hall 102 Copeland Ave. N.

Everglades City, FL 34139

Eagle Creek-New location 6654 Collier Boulevard

Naples FL 34114

Crystal K. Kinzel Collier County Clerk of the

Circuit Court & Comptroller

(239) 252-2646

Acceptance of documents for official recording, such as

Notices of Commencement & Declarations of Domicile;

Marriage license issuance (appt. recommended 239-252-7242);

Passport application acceptance (appt. recommended 239 -252-7242);

Acceptance of payments for court fines & fees;

Acceptance of court case documents;

Acceptance of traffic school completion certificates;

Individuals experiencing financial hardship and struggling to pay

court fees & fines can learn about payment plan options;

Utilize the Self-Help Center (courthouse) to obtain forms &

instructions for self-representation in certain civil court cases

(pro se representation).

Lori provides services to customers at the Eagle Creek Satellite Office–

New location-6654 Collier Blvd.

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Letter to the community… I hope this letter finds you and your loved ones in good health.

Thankfully, it appears that May is the beginning of a positive turn after two incredibly turbulent

months.

It’s clear that the Covid-19 health and economic crisis has left significant, costly and (most likely)

long lasting impacts to our country, state and county. We will continue to work with the Board of

County Commissioners, the Judiciary, the other Constitutional Officers and statewide agencies to

get back to normal as quickly as possible.

Throughout the crisis, the Clerk’s Office has continued to provide essential services to the public,

and we are very glad to return to fully serving the people of Collier County. Our incredible staff

members have worked to process as much as possible during limited public access restrictions.

They have kept our essential court and other services moving forward. I am very thankful for such

dedicated front line staff who remain ready to serve!

One bit of good news…the Eagle Creek satellite office has relocated to a bright new location, 6654

Collier Blvd., in front of the Walmart Superstore. This new facility offers enough space to serve our

growing community to the south. Our satellite locations at Golden Gate, Orange Blossom, Im-

mokalee, Everglades City and Eagle Creek serve thousands of customers each year. We have been

expanding services in each of these areas to better serve our vast county by bringing services to the

neighborhoods where you live.

We are also continuing to expand our on-line service capabilities so that you can access many ser-

vices from home. In these “stay at home” times, more of what we do needs to be available to you,

from your homes. We are also working on several initiatives to further enhance our juror processes

and pro-se (self-help) center. I’ll be sure to keep you posted.

We are fortunate to live in beautiful Collier County, where we have fresh air, warm weather and

most importantly resolute and resilient citizens. God bless our community and our country.

Stay safe and healthy.

Derek M. Johnssen,

Director, Finance and Accounting

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New Location Eagle Creek Satellite Office

Attention residents of: Marco Island

Goodland Isles of Capri Lely Neighborhoods in south Collier County

The Eagle Creek Tax Collector/Clerk

Satellite Office has Moved

On Monday, May 4, all services that were provided at the old location, began at the new location.

Old Eagle Creek Location 12668 Tamiami Trail East

New Eagle Creek Location

6654 Collier Boulevard South of US 41, in front of the Walmart Superstore

Twentieth Judicial Circuit

COVID-19 Updates

Circuit and county courts continue to perform

essential and critical court proceedings. Many

court proceedings are being conducted remotely

using communication equipment.

Criminal and civil jury trials, jury selection, and

grand jury proceedings are suspended through

July 2 (Per Florida Supreme Court Adm. Order).

Foreclosures and evictions have been suspend-

ed and time tolled for 45 days, by order of Gov-

ernor DeSantis. The order is scheduled to expire May 17 unless extended by the Governor.

For the latest information about court proceedings,

visit the website of the Twentieth Judicial Circuit

Adm. Office of the Courts, www.ca.cjis20.org.

For the latest information on executive orders is-

sued by Gov. DeSantis, visit www.Flgov.com.

Derek M. Johnssen has been employed with the Collier County Clerk’s Finance and Ac-counting Division for 23 years, and was promoted to Division Director in 2018.

Annually, Derek and his team of 49 process over 100,000 vendor invoices and over 50,000 payroll disbursements for the Board, Clerk of Courts, and Supervisor of Elections.

In addition, his team manages investments of over $1 billion in taxpayer funds, manages County debt of over $550 million, produces the award winning Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, and prepares the Clerk’s proposed annual budgets.

Derek grew-up close by, in Fort Myers, Florida. He has a Bachelor’s of Science in Accounting from Florida State University and he is looking forward to the Seminoles having a winning season. Derek is also a Certi-fied Public Accountant, licensed to practice in the State of Florida.

In his spare time, Derek enjoys fishing, cycling and listening to jazz music. Derek and wife, Lizabeth, have one child, Abigail, who is 15-years old and has recently obtained her driver’s permit...good luck, Derek!

Coll i er Clerk Newslet ter

WIDE -RANGE OF SECURE ONLINE SERVICES AVAILABLE 24/7 AT

E-Payments - Pay traffic citations, court fees and fines;

E-Filing - File court documents via the Florida Courts e-Filing Portal (Registration required);

E-Recording - Use the Business Portal to electronically submit documents for recording in the Official

Record, such as deeds, mortgages, and other official records (Registration required);

Forms - Access frequently used forms including Declaration of Domicile, Notice of Commencement,

small claims and other court forms;

Risk Alert Notifications - Subscribe to the Clerk’s free risk alert notification service to monitor your prop-

erty records for fraudulent activity;

Unclaimed Money - Check the list of names of those people and businesses who have money owed to

them by county government or tax deed funds;

Records - Access to thousands of records to view and print, including:

Court records (Civil, Traffic, Probate and Criminal);

Official land records, such as deeds, plat maps, mortgages, condo docs, and more;

Financial records; and,

Minutes and records of the Board of County Commissioners.

Many Customers Discovered the

Convenience of e-Recording

While Sheltering at Home

Electronic Recording, more commonly known as e-Recording, allows customers the option of submitting documents for recording in the County’s Official Record via a portal on www.CollierClerk.com. During the COVID-19 crisis, many customers discovered the convenience of e-Recording while they were sheltering at home, resulting in several thousand documents being electronically submitted in March and April.

The most common documents that were submitted by customers via e-Recording were Deeds, Mortgages, Notices of Commencement, and Declarations of Domicile. To learn more about registering for e-Recording, visit www.CollierClerk.com or call the Recording Division at 239-252-7242.

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Coll i er Clerk Newslet ter Page 5

Be Wary of Misleading

Mail Solicitations

Charging High Prices for

Copies of Public Documents

Don’t pay a high price for copies of your

property records that you can view and print for free.

Some county residents, particularly new homeowners, have received mail solicitations from private businesses offering to sell to the homeowner, for the price of $89, a copy of their property deed, which is recorded in Collier County’s Official Records. Because of the somewhat official appearance of the mailing, some recipients might have the false impression that it was sent from a government agency, and pay the high price. However, copies of deeds and other property records can easily be viewed and printed for free, from the convenience of your home, on the Clerk’s website: www.CollierClerk.com. Certified copies may be purchased for $1 per page/$2 per instrument. To learn more, call the Recording Division at (239) 252-7242.

Amid the Crisis,

Over 11,500 Documents

Were Recorded in April

April was a busy month for the

Clerk’s Recording Division.

Even amid the COVID-19 crisis, property continued to be bought and sold in Collier County, and home construction projects continued to move forward. In April 2020, 11,538 documents were recorded in the County’s Official Record; those documents were submitted by our customers via e-Recording, U.S. Mail, and the drop-off lock box. 2,192 Notices of Commencement 2,085 Deeds 1,738 Mortgages Recording services were identified by state and federal authorities as essential to community resiliency during the COVID-19 response.

Clerk Services and Employees Identified as Essential

During the Pandemic Response

Services provided by the Clerk’s office, and the employees performing those services, were identified

by state and federal authorities as essential to the public’s health, safety and well-being during the

COVID-19 response.

The “Essential Critical Infrastructure Workforce” advisory list, developed by the Department of

Homeland Security - Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), identifies essential

workers who have a responsibility to provide services and functions that are necessary for communi-

ty resilience during the pandemic response.

Clerk services identified by the CISA as necessary for community and national resilience include:

Support to the operations of the judicial system;

Performance of title & recording services in support of mortgage and real estate services;

Processing of financial transactions, services and payments.

Clerk employees, and all essential workers in our county, continue to work hard to provide the essen-

tial services necessary to keep our community running.

Coll i er Clerk Newslet ter Page 6

Don’t Miss an Edition of Our Newsletter!

To sign-up to receive our newsletter or to access a printable version, go to CollierClerk.com

For more information about newsletter content, or about the Clerk’s operations:

Mike Sheffield Director, Community Relations and Outreach

Mike.Sheffield@CollierClerk.com (239) 252-6879

In Observance of

Memorial Day

The Offices of the Collier County Clerk of Courts, including

satellite locations, will be closed on Monday, May 25.

The Collier County Clerk’s Office joins all Americans to re-

flect on the sacrifices and service of the men and women

who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces.

Vietnam Veterans Memorial— Photo courtesy of the National Park Service

Reminder from the Clerk’s Office...

When Thunder Roars,

Go Indoors Lightning is one of the Earth’s

deadliest weather phenomena.

It’s been said that

“Florida is the lightning capital of the nation.”

Throughout Collier County, people are working or play-

ing outdoors every day. If you hear thunder, you are in

danger, even if the sky is blue.

Remember, the safest place to be during lightning

activity is an enclosed building. If you are away from

a building, the second safest location is an enclosed

vehicle.

Congratulations

High School & College

Graduates!

Although you’re graduating without the traditional ceremonies,

your community is proud of you!

The employees of the Collier Clerk’s Office look forward to meeting you someday when you:

Buy a house or business Obtain a marriage license Serve on a jury Apply for a U.S. Passport

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